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Television Industry news, TV ratings, analysis, celebrity event photosFri, 31 Jul 2015 21:49:13 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.2Jon Stewart Names His Final Three Guests for ‘The Daily Show’http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/jon-stewart-names-his-final-three-guests-for-the-daily-show/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/jon-stewart-names-his-final-three-guests-for-the-daily-show/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 21:47:18 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76771With Jon Stewart’s final night as host of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” fast approaching, the man who has been at the helm of the late-night institution for 17 years has revealed who his last three guests will be.

Leading up to the last show, Amy Schumer will appear Monday, Aug. 3, followed by Denis Leary on Tuesday, Aug. 4, and Louis C.K. on Wednesday, Aug. 5.

Stewart mentioned the lineup just before he signed off Thursday night, USA Today notes.

The finale is set for Thursday, Aug. 6, but any guests who may be lined up for that night have not been revealed.

Stewart told his audience Thursday night: “We’re gonna have a ball. I can’t wait to show my appreciation for all the support and enthusiasm that you guys have given the show all these years. So next week, tune in — it’s gonna be a ball.”

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/jon-stewart-names-his-final-three-guests-for-the-daily-show/feed/1Why Actor James Woods Is Suing a Twitter User for $10 Millionhttp://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/why-actor-james-woods-is-suing-a-twitter-user-for-10-million/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/why-actor-james-woods-is-suing-a-twitter-user-for-10-million/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 21:39:35 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76781Actor James Woods has served noticed that he’s not one to go quietly when targeted by Twitter trolls. ABC News reports that the legendary actor, known for roles in many successful movies including “Casino,” “Salvador,” “Ghosts of Mississippi,” “Nixon” and “Once Upon a Time in America,” is suing a Twitter user for at least $10 million, alleging that the anonymous user wrongly accused Woods of being a cocaine addict.

“In the lawsuit, filed Wednesday in California Superior Court in Los Angeles, the ‘White House Down’ actor also accused the user — known as ‘Abe List’ — of invasion of privacy by false light,” the story reports. “Woods, 68, says in the court papers that he is not — and never has been — a cocaine addict, adding that Abe List must pay for the ‘malicious’ online campaign and the resulting damage to the actor’s reputation which caused Woods ‘shame, mortification, hurt feelings, emotional distress, embarrassment, humiliation and injury to his peace of mind.'”

The court filing also calls the Twitter user “a cowardly individual.”

ABC News adds: “According to the lawsuit, Abe List … started harassing Woods online in December, calling him ‘clown boy’ and ‘scum,’ among other derogatory terms. It was on July 15 that Abe List tweeted ‘cocaine addict James Woods still sniffing and spouting,’ the court papers allege.”

The Twitter account has since been deleted, but Woods has indicated his intent is to go after the individual behind the account.

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/why-actor-james-woods-is-suing-a-twitter-user-for-10-million/feed/0Singer of One of the Biggest Hits of 1970 Dead at 67http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/singer-of-one-of-the-biggest-hits-of-1970-dead-at-67/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/singer-of-one-of-the-biggest-hits-of-1970-dead-at-67/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 20:40:43 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76765A singer who has long been identified with a song that was one of the biggest hits of 1970 has died. Country songstress Lynn Anderson, who had a megahit with the Joe South song “Rose Garden” in 1970, died Thursday in a hospital in Nashville, the U.K. publication The Guardian reports.

Her publicist said Anderson died of cardiac arrest. She was 67.

Anderson’s recording of “Rose Garden,” also known as “(I Never Promised You a) Rose Garden,” sat at No. 1 on the Billboard country charts for five weeks in 1970 while also hitting No. 1 on the Cash Box and Record World pop and country singles charts and peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The catchy tune was also an international hit, reaching No. 1 in countries including Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Ireland and Norway.

“Anderson first experienced the national spotlight as a young singer on ‘The Lawrence Welk Show’ between 1967 and 1969. Although she was signed to an independent label, the exposure helped her attain a deal with Columbia Records in Nashville,” The Guardian reports.

Anderson rode the popularity of “Rose Garden” to a Grammy and the honor of being named the Country Music Association’s female vocalist of the year in 1971. Among her many honors that followed, she was named Billboard’s Female Artist of the Decade for 1970-1980.

Anderson relished her association with the song, once saying of the hit: “This song stated that you can make something out of nothing. You take it and go ahead. It fit me well and I’ll be proud to be connected to it until I die.”

She made a number of appearances on television, working with Lucille Ball, John Wayne, Tom Jones and other stars and appearing in the 1982 TV movie “Country Gold” and on the series “Starsky and Hutch.”

Anderson, who was also an award-winning equestrian, followed “Rose Garden” with a number of smaller hits, including “You’re My Man,” “How Can I Unlove You” and “Listen to a Country Song.”

Here’s a clip of Anderson performing her signature song:

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/singer-of-one-of-the-biggest-hits-of-1970-dead-at-67/feed/0Starz Greenlights New Season of Drama Serieshttp://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/starz-greenlights-new-season-of-drama-series-2/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/starz-greenlights-new-season-of-drama-series-2/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 19:40:17 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76777The pay-cable channel Starz announced today that it has greenlighted another season of the drama series “Black Sails.” The pirate saga’s 10-episode third season was already set for 2016, and the new order extends the show to a fourth season. Production on season four is set to begin this fall in South Africa.

Toby Stephens stars in the series as Captain Flint, the most feared pirate of his day. The show is created by Jonathan E. Steinberg and Robert Levine and executive produced by Michael Bay.

Starz noted that the first two seasons of “Black Sails” averaged 4.5 million viewers an episode on multiple platforms. The series won two Emmys last year, for Outstanding Sound Editing and for Outstanding Special and Visual Effects in a Supporting Role.

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/starz-greenlights-new-season-of-drama-series-2/feed/0Selection of Host City for Olympics Sparks Outcryhttp://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/selection-of-host-city-for-olympics-sparks-outcry/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/selection-of-host-city-for-olympics-sparks-outcry/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 18:09:41 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76733A history-making decision announced today by the International Olympic Committee to award hosting rights for the 2022 Winter Olympics to Beijing has drawn outrage from human rights activists.

The decision, announced today, will make Beijing, where the 2008 Summer Olympics were held, the first city in history to host both the Summer and Winter Games.

“Campaigners say human rights have deteriorated markedly in China since Beijing held the 2008 Summer Games,” Reuters reports. “The last two years under President Xi Jinping’s administration have been marked by a sweeping crackdown on dissidents, activists and human rights lawyers.”

Beijing was picked over Almaty, Kazakhstan, as those two cities were the final contenders following the withdrawal of other hopefuls including Oslo, Munich and Stockholm.

Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch, was among those saying the Olympic Committee is sending the wrong message.

“The IOC’s awarding of the 2022 Olympics to China is a slap in the face to China’s besieged human rights activists,” said Richardson. “Over the next seven years, the IOC has enormous work to do in China to win the credibility on human rights that will ensure a successful Olympics.”

Reuters notes that six groups opposing the Beijing effort appealed to the IOC ahead of the announcement to try to convince the committee not to award the Games to Beijing.

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/selection-of-host-city-for-olympics-sparks-outcry/feed/2Millennials Barely Watch Regular TVhttp://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/millennials-barely-watch-regular-tv/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/millennials-barely-watch-regular-tv/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 18:01:39 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76747A new study puts a number — a shockingly low one — on how much traditional television is still being viewed by young adults.

Citing the study by entertainment and media research firm SmithGeiger and streaming company Net2TV, Media Life reports: “A mere 18 percent of TV viewing time by adults 18-34 is done through live broadcast or cable TV.”

On the flip side, the study found that 61% of millennials’ viewing time takes place on digital devices such as tablets and smartphones.

“That’s a very high number, considering tablets have only been widely available for five years, and smartphone video quality was spotty up until a few years ago,” Media Life notes.

The report includes an in-depth interview with Seth Geiger, president and co-founder of SmithGeiger, who notes that it has been a surprise how quickly the migration to new devices has taken place.

“The explosion of video consumption on screens, and not just snackable short-form video, but pretty significant degrees of long-form television content being watched across a broad number of platforms, is pretty eye opening,” Geiger said.

Starz announced today that its Emmy®-winning Original series “Black Sails” has been greenlit for a fourth season. The series is created by Jonathan E. Steinberg (“Jericho,” “Human Target”) and Robert Levine (“Touch”) and executive produced by Michael Bay (the Transformers franchise, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor), and his Platinum Dunes partners Brad Fuller and Andrew Form (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Purge), as well as Chris Symes (Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Eragon) and Dan Shotz (“Jericho,” “Harper’s Island”).

The ten-episode third season of the authentic high seas drama series, returning in 2016, follows the most feared pirate of the day, Captain Flint (Toby Stephens), and takes place twenty years prior to Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic “Treasure Island.” Season three has seen the addition of Ray Stevenson (‘Rome,” Insurgent, Divergent) as the iconic pirate ‘Blackbeard.’

The first two seasons of “Black Sails” averaged 4.5 million multi-platform viewers per episode* and the series is distributed in over 175 countries and territories worldwide. “Black Sails” won two Emmy® Awards in 2014, for Outstanding Special and Visual Effects in a Supporting Role, and Outstanding Sound Editing.

“Black Sails” stars Toby Stephens as the brilliant and unstoppable ‘Captain Flint.’ Stephens is an accomplished film, television and stage actor, who will appear in the 2016 feature film 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi directed by Michael Bay, and is well-known for his role in Die Another Day. He starred in BBC’s “Vexed” and on stage in “Noel Coward’s Private Lives.” His many film credits include Believe and Twelfth Night. London-born Hannah New portrays ‘Eleanor Guthrie,’ a beautiful and determined young woman who runs the smuggling operation on New Providence. New starred in the miniseries, “El Tiempo Entre Costuras (The Time Between Seams),” the feature Fuga De Cerebros 2, and most recently in Maleficent, starring Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning. Luke Arnold portrays the classic character, ‘John Silver,’ in the years before his well-known feats. Arnold is a native of Australia, where he began working in television on series including “McLeod’s Daughters,” “Rush” and “Rescue: Special Ops.” He also went on to appear in the feature film, Broken Hill and most recently starred in the miniseries “INXS: The Michael Hutchence Story.” Jessica Parker Kennedy is in the role of ‘Max,’ a young prostitute with an eye towards advancement. Parker Kennedy is known for her work in the television series, “The Secret Circle,” and has appeared in the films 50/50 and In Time. British actor Tom Hopper stars as ‘Billy Bones’ of “Treasure Island” fame. Hopper is most well-known for his role as ‘Sir Percival’ in “Merlin” and has recently appeared in Northmen – A Viking Saga. Zach McGowan is featured as ‘Captain Charles Vane,’ a rival pirate to Captain Flint. McGowan is most well-known for his role in the series “Shameless” and appeared last year in the feature film Dracula Untold.

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/in-depth/2015/07/starz-orders-fourth-season-of-hit-original-series-black-sails/feed/0What’s the No. 1 Network at 10 p.m. Weeknights? You May Be Surprised …http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/whats-the-no-1-network-at-10-p-m-weeknights-you-may-be-surprised/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/whats-the-no-1-network-at-10-p-m-weeknights-you-may-be-surprised/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 17:57:39 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76751The top network at 10 p.m. Monday-Friday in the key demo of adults 18-49 during the month of July has been Spanish-language broadcast net Telemundo, the network announced today, citing Nielsen data.

Telemundo was also No. 1 in adults 18-34.

“The third season of the network’s hit super series ‘El Senor de los Cielos’ earned an average of 1.4 million 18-49 viewers and 679,000 adults 18-34 this month, outperforming all Spanish-language and English-language broadcast networks in the coveted demo,” Telemundo said in its announcement.

The network also appears to be gaining ground on Spanish-language rival Univision, the segment’s perennial front-runner.

“Telemundo averaged 785,000 adults 18-49 in the Monday-Friday prime time in July, registering the smallest gap with Univision in its history (238,000),” the announcement notes. “In July 2013, the gap between Telemundo and Univision was nearly 1.2 million adults 18-49 in weekday prime time and in July 2014, it was further reduced to 680,000 adults 18-49.”

Telemundo reports that it topped Univision three out of five nights in prime time in adults 18-49 during the week of July 20, 2015. “The average gap between the networks was 40,000 in the day part and demo during that week, the smallest distance between the networks for any week ever in Telemundo’s history,” the network announced.

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/whats-the-no-1-network-at-10-p-m-weeknights-you-may-be-surprised/feed/0AMC Drama Series Picked Uphttp://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/amc-drama-series-picked-up/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/amc-drama-series-picked-up/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 17:44:40 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76744The AMC network confirmed the renewal of a popular drama series. The cable channel was joined by Channel 4 and Kudos in today’s announcement that the British-American production “Humans” will be back for a second season.

The program’s first season has performed well in the U.S., with AMC announcing that the show is one of the top 5 cable drama launches this season in adults 25-54, averaging 2 million total viewers and 1 million adults 25-54 through four episodes.

In the U.K., the premiere episode was Channel 4’s highest-rated original drama in 20 years.

The critical reception for the dystopian sci-fi-drama, set in suburban London, has been generally positive.

]]>http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/amc-drama-series-picked-up/feed/1The ‘Most Interactive Show on Television’ Raises the Barhttp://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/the-most-interactive-show-on-television-raises-the-bar/
http://www.tvweek.com/tvbizwire/2015/07/the-most-interactive-show-on-television-raises-the-bar/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 17:31:04 +0000http://www.tvweek.com/?p=76757A program that’s billed as “the most interactive show on television” is pushing the interactivity factor even higher. Fusion announced today that “The Chris Gethard Show” — which the network also calls the most unpredictable show on TV — will produce a full-length virtual reality episode.

Fusion is partnering with immersive entertainment company Surreal on the project, with the VR episode being produced as a complement to the TV broadcast of the Aug. 6 installment of the series. Kumail Nanjiani of “Silicon Valley” will be a guest on the episode.

VR viewers will have a virtual front-row seat in the audience along with access to behind-the-scenes content. The show airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on Fusion.

Said Gethard: “At ‘The Chris Gethard Show,’ we try to make the audience a part of the experience and really put them in control. With virtual reality technology, we’re proud to make the experience of attending a taping available to anyone anywhere in a real way. It doesn’t matter if you’re in New York City with us anymore. You get to be a part of this.”

Fusion Chief Programming Officer Wade Beckett added: “Audience interaction and participation has been a hallmark of ‘The Chris Gethard Show’ since its inception. We’re excited to partner with Surreal and enter uncharted territory of interactivity, allowing viewers to have an even deeper personal experience with Chris and the TCGS crew. It certainly won’t be boring — of this, we are certain.”